If you are one of those women who suffer from one or more of the many maladies that premenstrual syndrome presents, then you know how important it is to find treatments or preventive measures for this.
A week or two before a woman begins the bleeding or menses phase of her menstrual cycle, she may experience a variety of symptoms and unpleasantries associated with pms or premenstrual syndrome. Almost seventy five percent of all women are susceptible to some aspect of premenstrual syndrome.
Some of the symptoms that many women experience during the premenstrual, follicular, luteal and post menstrual phases of the cycle are brought about by increased hormone production especially estrogen and then progesterone. Some of the issues that women have to deal with when they suffer from pms include bloating, cramps, headaches, back pain, acne, moodiness and depression, anxiety and irritability, insomnia, food cravings or a loss of appetite and irregular or heavy blood flows.
Given all these physical issues that women face with pms, there is a constant quest for treatments and prevention. There are medical treatments such as prescription drugs including birth control. There are over the counter drugs such as Midol, Premarin and others. There are non-drug solutions such as heating pads for cramps, hot tubs and relaxation response for mood swings and insomnia. Then there are natural and holistic responses such as herbs, minerals and vitamins or a combination of these. One such treatment that has been recommended is Vitamin K.
How does a Vitamin K deficiency affect the menstrual cycle?
There are many vitamins, minerals and herbs that can treat some aspects of premenstrual syndrome and Vitamin K is one of those. Vitamin K1 is an important factor in the coagulation of blood and it a fat-soluble which means your body does retain what it is not using. Without Vitamin K1 your blood will not clot correctly and you may experience extremely heavy bleeding during menses. This in turn leads to more pain and more cramping from pms.
There have been many studies that show that Vitamin K can help with the treatment of PMS and that a Vitamin K deficiency only makes it worse.
If you take a Vitamin K supplement does it help with period pain, reduce the menstrual flow or level of bleeding?
There have been a variety of studies that show the impact of Vitamin K on menstrual bleeding and pain from cramping.
Palmer College of Chiropractic published a literature review in the Journal of Canadian Chiropractic Association that showed women over the age of 24 need 65 milligrams of Vitamin K daily to counteract the PMS symptoms of cramping and heavy menstrual bleeding.
They also found that women under the age of 25 needed 60 milligrams daily. The research literature showed that when these levels dropped below the 65 and 60 levels, then the women experienced very heavy menstrual flow along with serious cramping and pain.
Studies also show that while vitamin K and others are very helpful at treating the symptoms of PMS, they are much more effective if they are combined in a supplement with other herbs, minerals and vitamins. When select herbs, minerals and vitamins that also have medicinal effects on PMS are combined with Vitamin K, the effect is substantial.
Since Vitamin K is an important element of reducing pms symptoms, where can you get it and in what doses?
It can be found in greens such as kale, collards. Spinach, mustard greens, collard greens, green tops of green onions, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, prunes, plums, okra, slaw and celery. Vitamin K is also found in eggs, meat, broccoli, strawberries, beans, asparagus and soybeans.
It is questionable however whether you can get enough Vitamin K from food or if you need to take Vitamin K supplements in order to treat or prevent premenstrual syndrome.
While Vitamin K is not the most vital of all vitamins in fighting pms, it is still an essential element in the fight. It is however, much more effective when it is used in conjunction with other vitamins, minerals and herbs. This combination takes place in an over the counter formula for pms known as Period Vitamin. Vitamins A, E and B complex are much greater factors in the treatment of pms than is Vitamin K, but all of these are greatly needed.
Most people do not experience Vitamin K deficiencies unless they are elderly, those who are taking broad-spectrum antibiotics, women prior to and during their menstrual cycle. Those who eat diets low in Vitamin K do not have the same concentration in their bodies as others, but they still are not deficient unless these other situations exist.
The RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) of Vitamin K for women depends upon their age. It is as follows:
Age 19-24 Women | 60 micrograms/day |
Age over 25 Women | 65 micrograms/day |
Women with pms, bleeding or pregnant | 65 micrograms/day |
The average American diet does not produce Vitamin K deficiency. We do get enough Vitamin K from our diets unless there is another reason for a deficiency such as pms. It is hard to judge the amount of Vitamin K each woman needs as studies have shown that the needed dose can vary by species and individuals within a species. So I might need 60 mg and my friend who is the same age but has much worse pms might need 65 mg.
Because of this the best way to get the Vitamin K you need in order to counteract any pms symptoms is through Period Vitamin. What is Period Vitamin?
It is a compound designed specifically to fight pms in women by combining a wide variety of herbs, minerals and vitamins that are known to be effective against a variety of pms syndrome.
There are nine vitamins, eight herbs and three minerals in Period Vitamin of which Vitamin K is only one small but critical item. New studies have shown that supplements like Period Vitamin can be extremely effective against the symptoms of PMS. One study showed that women who either ate foods high in iron or took a supplement had much less issue with PMS and some never developed PMS at all.
In January of 2008 Period Vitamin was developed to give women a balanced amount of vitamins, herbs and minerals that are known to combat PMS driven symptoms and pain. Period Vitamin was actually designed to fight the causes of PMS and not just the symptoms. Period Vitamin is designed to keep women from every having PMS rather than treating the pain and other symptoms after they get them.
The researchers developing Period Vitamin knew that the changes in hormones before and during the menstrual cycle caused PMS. Therefore their efforts were designed to counter this hormone imbalance and solve the PMS issue. Period Vitamin is made of all natural ingredients with no synthetics or designer vitamins or minerals. There are also no preservatives in it so there is nothing for a woman to have an allergic or negative reaction to.
As these developers worked on Period Vitamin they learned that scientists had found links between PMS menstrual symptoms to a shortage of nutrients in women – and more specifically the certain nutrients that needed during the menstrual cycle. They developed Period Vitamin to be taken every day before the menstrual cycle and then all through the month to build up the foundation of these needed nutrients and ingredients. The longer a woman takes Period Vitamin the less likely she is to ever suffer from the ravages of PMS.
So if you are suffering from the symptoms of pms on a regular basis you might want to check your Vitamin K levels. Better still, just start to take a compound like Period Vitamin once a day to prevent the symptoms from ever occurring. Period Vitamin, which is produced in a GMP certified lab, contains iron as well as Vitamin K and a number of other ingredients that have been shown to reduce or eliminate PMS systems.
These other ingredients include things like EPO (Evening Primrose Oil) which helps with cramps, sore breasts, mood swings and depression as well as cramping. There is the full vitamin B complex in Period Vitamin to help with cramps, loss of appetite, irritability, regulation the blood flow so it is not too heavy, and vomiting. Calcium and magnesium are also present in Period Vitamin and these minerals need the help of vitamin K and D to allow them to be effective.
Calcium is need by menstruating women to keep bloating and cramping under control.
The best and most effective thing for women to do to treat and then prevent the symptoms of PMS is to take Period Vitamin proactively. Just take one Period Vitamin tablet daily and the eight herbs, three minerals and nine vitamins it contains will go to work immediately to address the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. Period Vitamin is an easy and affordable means for almost all women to counter the effects of the ever present menstrual cycle.